Bridge School Benefit Show and Webcast Oct. 20, 2012

[SoulMonster]

Maybe I enjoyed it because I didn't expect 1991 or even 2010 Axl to show up

so this is what it's come to, his own fans no longer expect the best from their idol

Err, not expecting Axl to be able to sing like he did in his 90s for the rest of his career, isn't wrong, it is realistic. Even fans must be allowed to be realistic . Hell, Axl couldn't be expected to sing lie he did in the 90s, in the 90s. He ruined his voice. As for Roger Waters, that's like comparing apples and oranges. But even when you compare with someone with a challenging singing style and challenging songs, why is that fair? We all age differently. Yes, Axl is past his prime, yes, we wish it wasn't so, but we also knew this since 2001.

[Shooting Star]

Better sure sounds strange because it isn't an acoustic song. IMO, they tried to convert it to a "light version", but it didn't work.

Patience was really good, though

[Zint]

VOD is up already. At least I'm watching it now.

I recorded the concert and I'm uploading it to youtube now.

Particularly given that this was a charity show, if VOD is available, then we won't allow links to be posted on here until the video on demand stuff is offline.

Making no apologies here for trying to force people to pay for a bad performance, it's for a good cause.

reminder bump

again

[sweetness]

Maybe I enjoyed it because I didn't expect 1991 or even 2010 Axl to show up

so this is what it's come to, his own fans no longer expect the best from their idol

Err, not expecting Axl to be able to sing like he did in his 90s for the rest of his career, isn't wrong, it is realistic. Even fans must be allowed to be realistic . Hell, Axl couldn't be expected to sing lie he did in the 90s, in the 90s. He ruined his voice. As for Roger Waters, that's like comparing apples and oranges. But even when you compare with someone with a challenging singing style and challenging songs, why is that fair? We all age differently. Yes, Axl is past his prime, yes, we wish it wasn't so, but we also knew this since 2001.

My point with Roger Waters is that age was no excuse for him to give a half ass performance, even though he's gotten older Axl doesn't have to sound this bad, I'm sure if he applied himself and really worked on it he could still have a beast of a voice no matter how different it is from the 90's and 80's. Elton John, Robert Plant, Steven Tyler, and countless other singers with limit pushing voices have made adjustments and adapted with age, why can't Axl? Is that Slash's fault too?

This is a realistic response to how Axl sounds, he sounds like shit

Edited October 21, 2012 by sweetness

[slitherz]

Better sure sounds strange because it isn't an acoustic song. IMO, they tried to convert it to a "light version", but it didn't work.

Patience was really good, though

Only thing that didn't work was that Axl was singing like shit... yeah, and band also messed up few times... just face it.

Did you hear the end of patience? Really? Go on and listen to it again...

[wasteofammo]

Please tell me gnrs eta for the stage tonight PT

[The Black]

Maybe I enjoyed it because I didn't expect 1991 or even 2010 Axl to show up

so this is what it's come to, his own fans no longer expect the best from their idol

Err, not expecting Axl to be able to sing like he did in his 90s for the rest of his career, isn't wrong, it is realistic. Even fans must be allowed to be realistic . Hell, Axl couldn't be expected to sing lie he did in the 90s, in the 90s. He ruined his voice. As for Roger Waters, that's like comparing apples and oranges. But even when you compare with someone with a challenging singing style and challenging songs, why is that fair? We all age differently. Yes, Axl is past his prime, yes, we wish it wasn't so, but we also knew this since 2001.

2010 tour.

Steven Tyler and Bruce Dickinson like I said earlier.

It's unfair to go gently on Axl just because he's your idol Axl Rose.

[SoulMonster]

My point with Roger Waters is that age was no excuse for him to give a half ass performance, even though he's gotten older Axl doesn't have to sound this bad, I'm sure if he applied himself and really worked on it he could still have a beast of a voice no matter how different it is from the 90's and 80's. Elton John, Robert Plant, Steven Tyler, and countless other singers with limit pushing voices have made adjustments and adapted with age, why can't Axl?

Because he is uncompromising and because he had it just 2 years ago? I don't know. I just think it is a cop-out to claim that he would be great again if he just "put in more effort". We just don't know that. He might be working his ass off and this is as good as it gets. We just don't know but everybody seems to be so certain of themselves.

[YOUCOULDBEMINE.]

Someone should tell Axl how bad he's been sounding the past 2 years.

[SoulMonster]

Another review:

Bridge School concert: Great cause, dull music

Aidin Vaziri

Published 7:35 a.m., Sunday, October 21, 2012

Wearing a red flannel shirt over a second red flannel shirt, a scraggly Neil Young brought the 26th annual Bridge School Benefit Concert at Mountain View's Shoreline Amphitheatre to a chilly close on Saturday with his usual all-star run through "Rockin' in the Free World." Only one thing was lacking - any discernible stars.

It was an anticlimactic end to an unusually anticlimactic concert that started some seven hours earlier with Young standing in the same spot. The venerated rocker and his wife Pegi typically have no problem drawing rock and roll heavyweights to their annual shindig benefiting children with severe physical and speech impairments - from the Who and Paul McCartney to Green Day and Radiohead. It's a great cause and an honor to share the stage with the host.

But this year's lineup felt lacking from the start. The most popular names on the bill could have made up an "I Love The '90s" package show: Sarah McLachlan, the Flaming Lips, k.d. lang, Lucinda Williams and whatever passes for Guns N' Roses these days.

Even worse, they performed like it.

An unkempt Axl Rose arrived onstage late, hunched over a microphone stand and huffed his way through tunes that sounded vaguely familiar with a cast of misfits that looked vaguely like a band. His voice and blue jeans equally shredded, Rose forgot the lyrics to his group's biggest hit, "Welcome To The Jungle," and delivered an off-key version of "Sweet Child o' Mine" that most likely had all the dogs within earshot of the concert howling in pain.

The Flaming Lips did their best to scale down their acid-infused psychedelic pop to the concert's acoustic setting, even drafting the comedian Reggie Watts for live beat boxing duties. But singer Wayne Coyne, in his unwashed gray suit, seemed unsettled. Determined to rile the crowd, he flapped his arms and beseeched, "Come on! Come on!"

Arriving onstage after the woefully mellow double-shot of McLachlan and singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne didn't do his band any favors. Nor did its surreal set, in which Coyne rambled incoherently, played "Taps" on a broken bugle and attempted a cover of the Beatles' "A Day In The Life" with Watts reading the words off an iPhone.

Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder, putting in a surprise guest appearance, provided some relief from the general incompetence of the night as he efficiently revived a couple of his band's "Seinfeld"-era hits. "When I woke up this morning this is the last thing I thought I would be doing," he said, having been drafted to kill time before Guns N' Roses' late arrival.

This year it was the more contemporary acts that put in the most memorable sets. Jack White, backed by a pale all-female band resembling zombies, charged through a handful of blues-tinged songs from his solo album, "Blunderbuss," while coyly flirting with the musicians. He also threw in a couple of White Stripes classics, "Hotel Yorba" and "We're Going To Be Friends," for good measure.

Foster the People, who had a massive hit last year with "Pumped Up Kicks" but skipped it altogether on Saturday, also managed to make the most of their brief time onstage, revamping their synthetic pop tunes with remarkable practicality.

Earlier in the day, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers performed a passable set of bluegrass as the comedian recycled his old stage jokes ("People say to me, 'Steve, why a music career? Why now?' And I say, 'Hey you guys are my band.'"); Lucinda Williams warbled tentatively; and k.d. lang, well, apparently she was there too.

The lackluster lineup left the weight of expectation on Young and his band Crazy Horse to close out the show with something substantial. Instead, the band merely revisited a bulk of its Outside Lands set from August - most of it new, unreleased or entirely forgotten material - only without the gnarled gusts of feedback to drive it along.

Toward the end of the night Young a lovely rendition of "The Needle and the Damage Done," which took on gut-wrenching intensity in light of the past-their-prime performers that came before. Its mournful note struck a tone - with even Rose and White bailing on the jam session, this was clearly a year to forget.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/music/article/Bridge-School-concert-Great-cause-dull-music-3968964.php#ixzz29woAa6Ze

[Un42nutzly]

"Awesome to see GN'R do this show. Great cause.

Axl did the show with a strep throat.

I don't know how he does it!

/jarmo"

[dalsh327]

Maybe I enjoyed it because I didn't expect 1991 or even 2010 Axl to show up

so this is what it's come to, his own fans no longer expect the best from their idol

I saw Roger Waters earlier this year, this is a man who already had the bulk of his career behind him by the time GNR were breaking through, and he sang The Wall note for note flawlessly with power and passion, gave one of the best performances I've ever seen and exceeded my expectations by far. I know Axl's singing style is much more challenging, but to think we as fans can't even expect him to sound good on stage is just plain sad. There is some effort required in performing arts, last night Axl gave none and it really hurts to see somebody you consider your favorite singer look on par with drunken losers doing karaoke at the local mexican restaurant

I hope he bounces back but it's hard to get behind that, how long can we sit here and make excuses for the guy?

Roger was busted lip syncing at Rock in Rio, and had talked about going to a vocal coach before the Wall tour. He also had a lot of help from other singers (the guys from Venice - prob. the best singers since CSNY for harmonies were on the Wall tour, seen them in the clubs before), the Dark Side of the Moon shows - he barely sang anything on the album except Brain Damage/Eclipse.

I think for an acoustic show, they all know everything is going to be heard by the audience. GNR also have the issue they deal with at festivals of using equipment that's not theirs.

Chris must've had a kick out of playing on Neil Young's organ. Almost as good as playing on John Lennon's Mellotron (not sure if Chris actually played on THE one John did "Strawberry Fields Forever" on or the rental Reznor used for "Closer".. I'm sure Chris and Trent used the same one. Maybe Chris answered that question elsewhere?).

I'm sure Axl and Neil talked shop about the music industry and technology. Should be interesting to see if Axl comes out of the weekend hyping some of Neil's ideas up. Neil's in a unique position to be a major label artist but at the same time, puts a lot of money into a myriad of projects, half of which have nothing to do with music, and record the albums he wants to put out. He's prob. shelved as many albums as he's put out.

[Guest RonMexico82]

"Awesome to see GN'R do this show. Great cause.

Axl did the show with a strep throat.

I don't know how he does it!

/jarmo"

Pathetic attempt at damage limitation for what can only be described as Axl Rose raping the legacy of a once great band.

[SoulMonster]

"Awesome to see GN'R do this show. Great cause.

Axl did the show with a strep throat.

I don't know how he does it!

/jarmo"

Pathetic attempt at damage limitation for what can only be described as Axl Rose raping the legacy of a once great band.

Haha

[slitherz]

"Awesome to see GN'R do this show. Great cause.

Axl did the show with a strep throat.

I don't know how he does it!

/jarmo"

Pathetic attempt at damage limitation for what can only be described as Axl Rose raping the legacy of a once great band.

+1

[sweetness]

Because he is uncompromising and because he had it just 2 years ago? I don't know. I just think it is a cop-out to claim that he would be great again if he just "put in more effort". We just don't know that. He might be working his ass off and this is as good as it gets. We just don't know but everybody seems to be so certain of themselves.

you seriously believe that? i don't... I think he's capable of much more than this, MUCH more. If he really is trying his hardest and this is what he can deal out then I would say it's time to retire

[Guest RonMexico82]

I wouldn't be surprised if he cancels Jimmy Kimmel and Vegas. I can't see him getting through Vegas at all after this fucking abortion of a gig.

[SoulMonster]

Because he is uncompromising and because he had it just 2 years ago? I don't know. I just think it is a cop-out to claim that he would be great again if he just "put in more effort". We just don't know that. He might be working his ass off and this is as good as it gets. We just don't know but everybody seems to be so certain of themselves.

you seriously believe that?

What? Where did I say I believed that? I am just pointing out that we don't know. I believe one of the reasons he struggled last night was not rehearsing with the band to figure out how to sing Better and WTTJ with a full acoustic band, on top of having a bad night (strep throat as jarmo says?). But I will be the FIRST to admit I don't know.

[slitherz]

Because he is uncompromising and because he had it just 2 years ago? I don't know. I just think it is a cop-out to claim that he would be great again if he just "put in more effort". We just don't know that. He might be working his ass off and this is as good as it gets. We just don't know but everybody seems to be so certain of themselves.

you seriously believe that? i don't... I think he's capable of much more than this, MUCH more. If he really is trying his hardest and this is what he can deal out then I would say it's time to retire

And if he's not trying? That's even worse...

[twenty-nine]

Wow......well, that ought to help sell tickets in Vegas....wtf.....

[Todo Poderoso Timão]

Thank God, only 12 days in the countdown to see Slash and Myles again (twice! Rio, nov 2nd and São Paulo, nov 6th)!!!!

[Coma16]

Not everyone is as critical as some...

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/guns-n-roses-unplug-neil-young-bridge-school-benefit/

When the lineup was announced for Neil Young‘s acoustic Bridge School Benefit this year, there was a little bit of surprise in seeing Guns N’ Roses name on the list, given the band’s penchant for blowing the roof off of venues. But Axl Rose and company worked up a set where the electric guitars weren’t needed and delivered it Saturday night (Oct. 20) in Mountain View, Calif.

Prior to the event, guitarist DJ Ashba revealed, “A lot of the acoustic shows in the past, I would still play on the [electric] Les Paul — but for this, we’re going all acoustic, no electric anything. That’s how Neil [Young] envisioned the whole thing, so we’re gonna stay true to that, for sure.” The group worked through a seven-song set that even found the uber-aggressive tracks ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ and ‘Paradise City’ slipping into the performance.

The show, which was available as a pay-per-view with the proceeds going to Young’s Bridge School, began with GNR showing off a funkier side with the opening number, ‘You’re Crazy.’ From there, the band kicked into what Rose called “a sentimental ditty” – the favorite ‘Used to Love Her.’

‘Welcome to the Jungle’ and ‘Better’ followed, before the band took on ‘Patience,’ a song seemingly tailor-made for the acoustic performance. The group did a little guitar teasing before launching ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine,’ with DJ Ashba handling the dexterous guitar picking for the track. The band’s performance ended with a solid acoustic version of ‘Paradise City.’

Throughout the set, you could see multiple members of Guns N’ Roses interacting with some of the Bridge School students, who had a close-up seat to catch the performance. Pro-shot video for a number of the songs has surfaced online and can be seen below.

All proceeds from the show go to the Bridge School, which Young and his wife Pegi founded to aid children with severe physical disabilities.

Edited October 21, 2012 by Coma16

[sweetness]

Because he is uncompromising and because he had it just 2 years ago? I don't know. I just think it is a cop-out to claim that he would be great again if he just "put in more effort". We just don't know that. He might be working his ass off and this is as good as it gets. We just don't know but everybody seems to be so certain of themselves.

you seriously believe that?

What? Where did I say I believed that? I am just pointing out that we don't know. I believe one of the reasons he struggled last night was not rehearsing with the band to figure out how to sing Better and WTTJ with a full acoustic band, on top of having a bad night (strep throat as jarmo says?). But I will be the FIRST to admit I don't know.

What we do know is Axl's performance last night was embarrassing and not what should be expected of a professional singer, we know this isn't the first time he's forgotten lyrics, we know its not the first time he came out not even sounding like Axl Rose. You know, we can have a little respect for our own perceptions here and trust them enough to at least have a discussion about it, but sure JARMO said he had strep throat

come on man... you want to talk about being realistic... lets be realistic here

[ManetsBR]

Acoustic Better from Bridge Benefit Show resembles to Better Gone. Especially the intro. Just saying...

[Riddick Bowe]

Axl, if u ask me, is just not in shape.